


Monsters in the Dark

by AskError



Series: Monsters in the Dark (FNaF/ WKM) [1]
Category: Five Nights at Freddy's, Who Killed Markiplier? (Web Series)
Genre: Darkiplier is mentioned here, Eggs Benedict is Michael Afton, Gen, Henry is Michael's dad change my mind, Jeremy's dead, Michael is a Little Shit, No betas we die like Michael, Will add more tags/ relationships as this is updated, William Afton is a bad father, and has been for a while, but a good Little Shit regardless, but only at the end, kind of an easter egg more than anything
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-01-15
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:56:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28771968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AskError/pseuds/AskError
Summary: In this collab between DeviantArt's MantaDrifter and myself, an undead former corpse has an existential crisis.
Relationships: Michael Afton/Jeremy Fitzgerald
Series: Monsters in the Dark (FNaF/ WKM) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2109492
Kudos: 9





	Monsters in the Dark

It was foolish to think monsters were real.

A childish fantasy, really, but... that didn't mean children weren't onto something. Not all monsters had fangs and claws; many looked like ordinary people you'd pass on the street without a second glance. You never saw the danger until you were alone with it. That did not mean other sorts of monsters did not exist... they just had to work harder to hide.

From the shadows of the alleyway, lavender eyes waited patiently for the prey to arrive. He didn't have to wait long. Low rhythmic clunking of metal footfalls soon filled the alley.

"Has it arrived?" Several voices hissed and crooned their own replies. Most were ignored. The creature in the shadows didn't say a word. "What are you..." before the animatronic could respond, the creature pounced, leaping on it with practiced precision. It shrieked, reaching round to crush the human attacking it.

Slight problem.... this wasn't exactly a human.... not anymore.

He stared at it, face blank and emoting nothing. 

He did not respond; he had no interest in dealing with these puppets... with a grunt the once human reached between its neck, fingers tangling into important cables and pulling. True, this was not Father but, he could take some delight in the rattling shriek as the corrupting data fled back to its source and away from the perishing animatronic. It plopped to the ground, convulsing and gargling. Once, he would have been horrified to see this, but now, this was tame.

Once he was certain the creature was dead, he got to work harvesting his "kill", stripping it for spare parts that may be useful later- and more importantly, the Remnant. Reaching in, he was met with a strange wriggling feeling. Pulling out a glowing light blue core that pulsed like a heartbeat. He was loath to do this but... his middle rumbled... he needed to eat.

It repulsed him every time he had to do this.

It was not like he had much choice... Father's meddling with him and his siblings had changed them beyond reckoning. It had been weeks since he'd fed. Sure, the outside of him was getting better- he didn't look like a grape so much anymore, and the scars were finally healing over- but the inside was still a goddamned mess.

Who knows. If Elizabeth and her "friends" hadn't seen fit to wear him like a cheap suit, he might have lived his life without ever knowing he was different. Fate soon had other ideas and the meddling became apparent. He had no clue if this was some quirk of genetics, or his father's work with Henry had rubbed off on him. Affected him like radiation from a leaking reactor.

Whatever it was, he was unbreakable. Hungry for one substance in particular.

Like a Coke can the canister slid open and he wolfishly drunk its content, the acid blue plasma getting all over his clothes and the ground in his haste to finally eat. It was either this or go straight to the other source; Michael was many things but, he was not Willam... At least, not in that regard.

Better to do this- at least someone got to be put to rest.

And yet, he knew the numbers were on the increase... so many more animatronic in the city; cranked out on a conveyer belt... just what was Fazbear inc thinking? Or, more to the point, what had William planned now?

He had known in his bones months ago that Father had somehow survived Henry's plans... somehow escaped the fires of hell itself. Henry had always told Michael to trust his bones, that his instincts were the greatest compass to have. 

Granted, no ghoulish cyborg-rabbit was running around this time, but the effects on the animatronics were clear.

Did this have something to do with the re-branding?

To be fair, things hadn't gone to plan for Mike, either. He'd survived the fire, after all. Yeah, being a crisp French fry for a month... not on his list of top 10 life experiences. He snorted internally.

Absently he pawed the inside of the Animatronic for a clue; being an endoskeleton, it wasn't the most powerful or bright of creations. Hell a child seeing this would do the smart thing and run. Perhaps... perhaps it was time to make some calls.

Risky, very risky, but.... the alternative was no better. If Father was back in the company it wasn't going to take long before something meaner came out and would be actively looking for him. The Funtimes, the Rockstars- hell even Elizabeth herself would be potentially out for his blood. He could not risk that, not with Henry gone. Without him, there was no counteraction to what William might pull to "improve" on the creations. Heck Michael only knew the basics to stay ahead by near inches.

He would need help.

The question was where to find it. Even before the trouble at Fright's, the company was happy to turn a blind eye to "blunders". Many of the security guards were under contract, contracts that a habit to make you vanish if you raised a fuss.

Like that one fellow a few years ago, the one with the red hair... 

Yeah... that had been bad.

A sound caught his ears. More footfalls to heavy to be a human.

"I see you over there!" A familiar voice chortled. What... in the mouth of the alley, a pale figure looked at him with glowing blue eyes. The light touch of the moon revealed bleached white metal...

Shit.

"He's gotta be here," a smaller voice mused. "This is where the signal went sleepy bye," puppet Bonnie chortled. 

God- fucking damn it, not these two, not now. Of course, the company would send one of the tanker animatronics to retrieve a downed bot. And now they had this extra prize, so long as they were able to catch him.

There was a clanking sound like a steel door opening; Freddy's gut snapping open and in the pale light Michael could make out a protruding claw. It seemed like the Funtime animatronics had received an upgrade.

A stifled moan slipped past the boy's mouth as he remembered what had happened back in the Sister Location. Clearly, so had Bon-Bon.

There was a clicking noise and two torch-like lights emanated from the little rabbit's eyes. "Now where... ah, there you are, silly billy!" Michael was certain his heart would have stopped; they had missed him by inches and were instead focused on the corpse of his prey.

Catlike he pressed himself against the wall, hoping the shadows would hold in the approach of the not so friendly bear. His heartbeat rang in his ears as he held his breath. Like a bloodhound Bon-Bon was lowered, sniffing at the fallen animatronic; her partner moving her up and down the body with scrutiny.

"All gone. All the shiny is gone." She sounded like a parent scolding a child for taking to many cookies. "Silly skeleton didn't eat all his greens before going out." Freddy let out a grumble of disappointment.

"He's not gonna be happy about this," the larger bot whined.

"Well, better this bucket of bolts than us!" Bonnie, ever the optimist, chortled. "Boss-man needs more parts, anyways!"

"Fine, fine." The claw got to work scooping the skeleton over to its destination; smaller claws shooting out to help with the work. It looked disgusting- Michael almost gagged. The scent of rotting flesh was one he was familiar with.

There were even a few small saws in the gut now; chopping up the parts of the endoskeleton that would not press down. And then, just for fun, Freddy's jaws unhinged and swallowed the thing whole, like a python swallowing unfortunate prey only in record speed. There was a soft thud and Freddy let out a cartoonish belch. "... I hate the yucky jobs."

Bon-Bon trilled in agreement. "Could be worse. We could be cleaning Mangle!" Michael's blood chilled at that; where in the world had Father dug that thing up? Mangle had been MIA for years. He had hoped the misshapen monster had powered down years ago. 

Apparently not.

The bear righted itself. "I don't see why Bossman's so interested in the dumb mutt."

"Well, that mutt was smart enough not to walk into a trap, unlike you," the rabbit teased. Michael had to resist a snort.

Still, it was troubling that Mangle had been smart enough to stay away from the trap. After all, she was a prototype when it came to the remnant experiments, made with animal essence over humans.

If even the simplest creatures had avoided it, that Freddy and Bon-Bon had, did that mean that Charlie... Lefty, had too?

No, no, that wasn't possible... the plan had been full proof, perfectly calibrated. And yet... the contrary was staring him in the face.

Oh, this was bad.

What had they missed, what flaw what glit...

Glitch.

Could it be that simple? That little game that some of the higher brass had been whispering about? And if they had...

Shit.

He knew for a fact that Father's "condition" had been unique, and who knew where the flesh ended and the machine began... or more specifically the code.

And there had been talks of something being up...

Michael might live in the shadows but, that was a good place to hear the rumors people preferred to remain buried... like his poor Jeremy.

"Getting cut up on the job."

Yeah. Right. That was as likely as falling off a log in a paper mill. It was self-inflicted- Michael had known it, everyone else knew it. How else could you explain such injuries? One simply didn't develop mental issues overnight.

No, this was foul play, and Michael was going to figure out why.

First, he needed to get out of this alley. Pressed up against the wall, having held his breath for the past two minutes. This would go well. The animatronic was almost finished with its meal. God, he needed to breathe, he needed to breathe-

Bonnie twitched in his direction, eyes narrowing and head tilting. Crap.

"Hello there!" There was a muffled question from Funtime Freddy, and Bon-Bon snorted. "Chew your food buster and mop up, I think we have a guest." She indicated the alley Michael was quietly trying to back into.

There was a trickle of... something running down Freddy's maw, and he growled questioningly. His gut clicked open again, the claws scrapping against their casing like twitching fingers on a gun. Absently he scooped up the last of the endoskeleton to stuff into his jaw.

"Goody. I've worked up an appetite for something fresh."

And that was when Michael ran like Hell, a bellowing shriek following after him. He hoped to whatever power that was listening the bear was slowed by a full stomach. He was not that lucky.

"Where ya going, pal?" Freddy might not have been as speedy as, say, Foxy or Ballora but like a train, once his momentum got going you definitely did not want to be on the receiving end.

There was no time to scream. He was too busy trying not to get killed for the third time. He still had no clue how many "lives" he had but, he was not about to tempt fate. He nearly tripped at the broad tackle of a claw- almost tripped, but he couldn't trip, because if he tripped then it was all over.

"Run, run little rabbit!" Bonnie chortled with glee.

The boy swerved to avoid the main road- he couldn't let Freddy see other people right now.

Never mind exposing these things; he wouldn't sacrifice innocent lives for that. Even William would have trouble calling the bot off if he went on a full rampage. That could not be allowed to happen. He needed to get higher. Roof access, roof access...

The glint of a fire escape caught his eye. He didn't think, just kept going. The sound of metal doors swinging wide, a blinding pain from a claw scraping his back was the push his adrenaline needed.

Hissing, as he scrambled up and onwards. Thank God he hadn't been injured on his arms. Freddy roared behind him.

He didn't wait to look back; scrambling up a few flights before daring to stop- catching his breath, as icy blue eyes stared up at him coldly. Even without a full stomach, Freddy was far too large to leap up there, let alone be supported on the thin metal... but that was not what was angering him.

No, a hideous look of recognition glinted in his eyes. Even the ever chipper Bonnie looked like a chihuahua who had been bopped one too many times in the nose.

"I remember you..." he rasped, softly, cruelly. "Baby's little pet project."  
His maw parted into what could easily be mistaken as a smile. "She'll be pleased to know you're still scampering around."

Michael didn't move, lavender eyes glinting in the darkness.

"Why not come down, save her the trouble of looking for you... she misses you."

"I wish I could say the same," he responded coldly.

Bonnie giggled. "He speaks Freddy, he speaks!" Even the bear laughed. "And here we were, thinking we left your tongue in the scooping room."

Another cruel rasp- apparently Freddy was starved for entertainment.

Which was unsurprising, but... the animatronic jerked sharply, like he had heard a dog whistle. Michael felt a chill run down his spine has the bots' eyes took on a familiar purple hue.

They were being called back, but not by the company.

Father...

He could feel the elder' s influence probing around for him too. They met eyes coldly. Michael backed away from the edge, suddenly feeling very small- Father's mind pressing down and around him like a rough shove. The boy tried to wave him off, a bit dizzy now. His entire back was wet, and when he tried to take a step, he slipped in his own puddle of blood.

Shit.

Whatever the quirk in his genetics, it always took its own sweet time to kick in. With a moan, he pressed his head against the cool roof, waiting for the wave of nausea to pass...

... To be replaced by the uncomfortable feeling of flesh stitching back together. It was not overly painful but, in a disturbing way, he now knew what a plush toy felt to be stitched up. To feel the invisible threads pulling at shredded tendon and skin back together. It made him want to vomit, every single time.

Thank God he had just "fed", so he didn't feel like he wanted to keel over from the effort of healing. As it was, he was going to be very weak for a long while. Which, given the fact he was in compromising position in a pool of blood... he would need to try and get somewhere safe before the light came. Who knew how long Freddy would wait.

For all his control over them, even William could not rule them completely when their blood was high.

While Father's will began to move Freddy away, Michael started to crawl to the other side of the roof... at this point, he was more worried about surviving than anything.

It seemed like that was all his existence was any more. Survival.

Things like love, fun, basic happiness... those were a foreign language to him, had been for a long time. He did not expect them to ever show themselves again. If it meant that no more children would suffer, then they were sacrifices worth being paid.

He had opened the door, was halfway down stumbling the stairs before he fell. During the fall, his screams were muffled, more of frustration than any real pain. Pain was an old friend after all.

His brother, his sister... how many lives had Father destroyed? How many would he continue to destroy?

Before he could go down that rabbit hole again, he looked up and saw a man... or something close to a man. No true human was that shade of gray.

Michael tensed, backing into the shadows.

Don't see me, don't see me...

The creature twisted its head this way and that before turning back down the corridor. Strange lights trailing after him... what... what was that? Some new sort of creature?

It certainly didn't feel like one of his father's creations... this was something strange, something altogether new.

Something that, right now, not his problem. He needed to find somewhere safe to sleep. Sleep, and heal up properly.

Do it all over again, and make yet another plan for finally putting his father down... hopefully, for the last time.

**Author's Note:**

> The entire Monsters in the Dark series was co-written between MantaDrifter and myself. You can find her works on https://www.deviantart.com/mantadrifter


End file.
